THE opportunity to snap up a grand, regal, Henry Hunter-designed showstopper is a rarity in the Tasmanian market.

Currently, the 1885-built Gattonside in Battery Point is the only home by the lauded architect that is on the market.

In the past few years Airlie, Maylands and Fairmont/Stoney Steps are among the Hunter homes that have changed hands.

St Andrews Estate Agents director Steve Yannarakis said since the listing launched he has had a good, steady level of inquiry.

Steve said most of this interest had been from interstate, including people who will be flying in to Hobart to view the property.

“While the eventual buyer will likely be someone with a commercial bent, it is not out of the question that someone will fall in love with the beauty of this beautiful, grand home and make it their family residence,” he said.

“Gattonside has been a successful accommodation provider for decades.

“A lot of people see it as a good space to be in right now, with tourism in Tasmania on the up and the state booming.”

Steve described Gattonside as one of Hunter’s “most enduring and lauded designs”.

He said Hunter was Hobart’s

pre-eminent colonial architect, responsible for an incredible list of significant buildings such as St David’s Cathedral, St Mary’s Cathedral and Hobart Town Hall, plus numerous private residences, including Gattonside, which is National Trust-listed.

The property features formal gardens, excellent off-street parking for up to 10 vehicles, and an external freestanding office building.

Entry to this magnificent and imposing home is through the deep front veranda.

Stepping past a stained-glass surrounded door, the floor plan offers a foyer, sumptuous formal lounge, office and kitchen. Over its two generous levels there are eight large ensuite bedrooms.

From the high ceilings with ornate plasterwork to the fireplaces,

multi-paned windows and original timber flooring, fabulous period features abound.

Over the years the home has been beautifully restored and is superbly presented.

It also comes fully furnished.

The quality of this incredible building is matched by its blue-ribbon location.

The owner will be able to walk to most of Hobart’s leading attractions such as Salamanca Place and Sullivans Cove, restaurants, bars and galleries, as well as festivals such as the Taste, Dark Mofo and the Wooden Boat Festival.

The sale of Gattonside Heritage Accommodation represents an exceptional opportunity to acquire a premium hospitality asset within Hobart’s most sought-after suburb, which also boasts the highest median price.

There is the flexibility of choice should the owner wish to convert it back to a truly grand residence or, potentially, apartments.

No.53 Sandy Bay Road is on the market, listed with St Andrews Estate Agents; it will be sold by expressions of interest over $3.2 million.

CoreLogic figures show Battery Point has the highest median price in Tasmania at $1.25 million across 12 sales in the 12 months through to the end of April. In that time the median grew by 32.1 per cent.

The suburb’s unit market was also strong, with 33 sales and 12 per cent growth.

There are currently just four Battery Point homes listed for sale, priced between $1.1 million-plus and “Expression of interest over $3.2 million”.

Plonk this Hobart home on Sydney Harbour, and the ticket price would easily be an eye-watering $40 million, or more, according to Steve Yannarakis of St Andrews Real Estate.

The grand 1890s residence on a vast 1174sqm waterfront block at 68 Napolean St in Battery Point, is on the market with a price guide of about $4.7 million.

“Put it in Sydney and you’d be able to get more than 10 times that price,” he said of the coveted home with a 20m river frontage.

With its charming Victorian facade, extraordinary water views and unique positioning, it’s no surprise that the five-bedroom property was realestate.com.au ’s most clicked on listing in Tasmania and the ninth most popular in the country this week.

“It’s just such a rare opportunity, listings like this don’t come up very often. There are just 29 waterfront homes in Battery Point and only six have a private jetty like this one,” he said.

Even rarer is the addition of a slipway and a boat shed.

“It’s got the trifecta and maybe only one other home in Hobart has that,” he added.

Since the current owners bought the home in the 1990s, they have undertaken extensive renovations and additions to the historic Hobart property.

“No expense was spared at the time, it’s got everything,” Mr Yannarakis said.

Over three levels there are five large bedrooms, including three with ensuites, four bathrooms in total, multiple formal and casual living areas, a library, wine cellar and a contemporary dine in kitchen complete with an enviable water backdrop to ponder while doing the dishes.

The wow factor lies in the huge atrium style main lounge room which has enormous floor-to-ceiling picture windows to take in the panoramic views of the Derwent River, Short Beach, Errol Flynn Reserve and The Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania

Over the vast leafy grounds there are terraced gardens with established trees, manicured lawns plus private side and rear courtyards.

Mr Yannarakis said while the residence has a big double lock up garage, it is also walking distance from several amenities including Hampden Road Village, the Salamanca market place, Sandy Bay shops, Short Beach and The University of Tasmania campus.

Over the last 3 years, we have noticed a fundamental change in Tasmania. Confidence and optimism have become infectious. This was evident again with the front page of The Weekend Australian carrying an important article on how solid our local economy has become. Tourism, food, agriculture and education are booming based on long term underpinnings.